Broadband News

Netgear DG814 - Unlikely to support UPnP

We have received a number of queries recently on the forum boards about the Netgear DG814 and potential firmware upgrades to allow UPnP compatibility. In
order to clarify the situation we have been in touch with Netgear, who inform us that it is NOT planned for the current DG814 model. The problem lies in the memory capability of the router,
which, to implement UPnP, would require another 100K of memory. Rather than release another version of the DG814 (as other manufacturers have done where memory was a limiting factor), Netgear
have opted to include the UPnP functionality in their new models which will be announced in the not too distant future, namely the RP614 (4 port router) and their "next generation" routers which
will be the DG824 and DG824M (both of which will include an SPI Firewall and in the latter case a wireless access point). At this point in time there are no firm release dates on these, so
it’s a case of "watch this space".

So what of the future for the DG814? The news of no future upgrade for UPnP in the existing DG814 is obviously going to be disappointing for some users, however, as far as we know, it is still
very much part of Netgear’s product portfolio. This means that firmware upgrades are still likely to be made as and when required, which for people not specifically requiring the UPnP
functionality (the majority probably), it still makes this a worthy consideration as their first router/modem combo as detailed in our review. Existing users who hoped for UPnP, it looks like they are unfortunately going to be disappointed. -
Chris